


lullabye for a stormy night

by iHarp



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Drabble, Mentions of Episode 109, Next Generation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-23
Updated: 2017-08-23
Packaged: 2018-12-18 22:37:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11884305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iHarp/pseuds/iHarp
Summary: Inspired by something said in Episode 109, a mother/daughter drabble about when little children are scared by a midnight storm.





	lullabye for a stormy night

**Author's Note:**

> Another little fic! It ended up also featuring the original character I cooked up for another short drabble, Vex and Percy's secondborn child, a little girl named Elaina de Rolo. I got the idea from the moment in Episode 109 as Scanlan was crawling into bed with Vex and Percy, and Matt described it as "what you thought at first to be a small child crawling into your bed, seeking shelter from a midnight storm." I got so many feelings being in that audience, and my heart warmed, but I didn't have a chance to write out the idea until now.
> 
> My little spark was also fueled by listening to Vienna Teng's, "Lullabye for a Stormy Night," hence the title of this fic and the lyrics. It's a very pretty song, and I encourage you to listen. This is pretty rough and I honestly didn't edit a whole bunch, but I hope you enjoy!

_ little child, be not afraid, the rain pounds harsh against the glass, _

Thunderstorms are scary.

Elaina is quivering underneath her mountain of blankets, a stuffed bear cuddled tight to her chest as she stares out in horror at the storm raging outside her thick, wide window in Mother’s house. The rain pounds loudly like thousands of pellets striking the surface; the sound reminds her of the times when Father takes her down to see the Riflemen display test volleys. The sound doesn’t cease, and even though she knows Mother told her to go to sleep hours ago, it’s very hard to do so when the outside is so loud. She doesn’t think she can.

Are there monsters outside? She thinks so. Mother goes out to fight the monsters if they get to Whitestone, Elaina knows this, and so maybe…

There’s a flash. Elaina squeaks, and feels her heart tremble when the bright flash is followed by the loudest roar of any monster Elaina could imagine. Her mind is made immediately, as she hugs her stuffed Trinker to her chest and slips out from under her quilts and sheets.

Mother can chase the monsters away.

The hardened stone floor is cold beneath her bare feet, making her shiver. But the sensation doesn’t stop her as she creeps through the halls and past her big brother’s room, towards the big double doors at the end of the corridor that she knows will lead her to safety.

_ like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger, i am here tonight, _

When Vex’ahlia rouses, it isn’t from the storm. It’s from the soft click of their door being shut by someone attempting to be stealthy as they trespass into her room. At first she guesses it’s Percival having come back up after a late night in his workshop, until she feels her husband’s arms around her waist and the soft warmth of his breath against her neck. Vex tenses then, her defensive instincts never having gone quite dormant, and Percy grumbles slightly in his sleep from behind her

But her long-since trained half-elven ears pick up on the soft patter of bare feet against the stonework of their floor, even through the constant patter of rain on the windowpane, and she sighs tiredly as she lays her head back down onto the pillow.

She waits. It doesn’t take long.

“Pst, Mother.”

Vex keeps her eyes shut for just a moment longer when she feels her blankets being tugged, hoping it might be enough to deter their four-year old daughter from seeking another night’s shelter in her parents’ bed.

“Pst, Mother, I’m scared. S’a monster outside.”

It’s the genuine tremble of fear in Elaina’s voice that finally drives the half-elf to crack open an eye to see her pale daughter standing, quivering, beside the bed.

Vex yawns. “There’s no monster, dear,” she says after, not yet registering what could possibly have driven little Elaina back into their room. She needs to learn, and she almost fears that they’ve spoiled her too much already in that department. “Back to bed.”

_ little child, be not afraid, the thunder explodes, _

Mother wants her to go back to bed. Elaina does not want to.

Her reluctance only grows when there’s another flash outside, another roar that seems to shake the whole house. She finds it impossible to hold back the whimper that escapes from the back of her throat as she ducks behind her parents’ bed. She knows that she shouldn’t cry, because crying is for babies, but she just can’t help it. Why is the sky so angry?

Mother says that there’s no monster outside, but it  _ sounds _ like it. There must be. How can she make it safely back to her room when there’s monsters?

She doesn’t know what does it, but she hears Mother groan on the bed like she’s just realized something. “Oh, sweetheart,” she says, in a tone that Elaina has come to associate with Mother giving in to something, “Up you get. Just for tonight.”

_ and a lightning flash illuminates your tearstained face, i am here tonight, _

As the weight of the bed dips and shifts, and Vex immediately begins twisting to make way for their night-time visitor, she expects the rousing grunt of her husband as Percy wakes and also realizes that they are no longer alone.

“What’s all this, then?” he mumbles, eyebrows going up slightly as their four-year old clambers between them with a stuffed bear under her arm.

“A thunderstorm, darling.”

It’s the only explanation that Vex needs to give for her lord husband to blink, yawning a knowing, “Ah,” before instinctively pulling back their covers for Elaina to join them.

She does so, her small quarter-elven form squirming between her parents with the grace that only several months of practice can allow for. It’s a slight jostle, as Vex and Percy make room and tug the covers appropriately, before their three bodies are snuggled closely together in preparation for a long, stormy rest of the night.

The quivering in Elaina’s form stops as Vex’s arms quietly wind around her, and Percy leans down to give their daughter a kiss atop her brown-haired head. As the three of them settle in, not even the loud crack of thunder and another flash of lightning outside in the maelstrom is enough to upset the youngest de Rolo, who appears to be quite content to be snuggled between the pair that brought her into the world.

The words come to her without her realizing, as she murmurs, “We’re safe in here, dear. Nothing will hurt you as long as I’m here, I promise.”

Vex holds little Elaina close, unable to deny how warm it makes her to have the small girl’s form against her own, to be able to feel her daughter’s heartbeat beneath her nightgown, and to know that they’re here, and safe, and alive. It’s impossible to not smile as she watches her husband stroke back some of their daughter’s locks, the care and adoration in his crystalline eyes sincere and heartwarming. Their eyes meet, and Percy gives her a rare, wide smile. No matter what happened in their past, they’re here today.

And it’s worth it, to be able to hold their little girl in their arms.

_ for you know, once even i was a little child, and i was afraid, _

A summer storm thunders against the ramshackle wooden wall, a small pane of glass just barely giving a glimpse of the sheets of rain as it pounds into the muddy ground outside. There’s a flash, a bright line of light that flickers across the darkness, followed by the low and terrible rumble that feels as though it shakes the whole house.

Vex’ahlia doesn’t like storms very much. Even nestled against her twin brother in the straw bed that the two three-year olds share, she does not feel safe. The thunder might shake their house to the ground, or perhaps the rain will seep through the walls and drown them while they’re asleep. She shakes under the thin blanket that covers them both, and has to resist the urge to cry.  She has to be  _ brave _ .

Being brave is hard, though.

_ but a gentle someone always came, to dry all my tears, trade sweet sleep for fears, and to give a kiss goodnight. _

She’s trying to be brave, but she can feel herself starting to cry despite herself as she shakes and tries to forget about the storm outside.

Mother has a sixth sense, of this Vex’ahlia is certain. It’s as the first tears begin to fall that the door to their small room opens just a crack, the faint glow of the hearth flickering into the room as a beautiful young woman pokes her head inside. Her gaze sweeps onto the two sleeping twins, and seems to focus immediately on Vex’s shivering form as she detects that not all is as peaceful as it seems.

“Vex’ahlia, sweetheart, it’s alright,” Elaina murmurs as she drifts into the room like an angel, and gently plucks Vex from the bed so as to not rouse the dozing Vax’ildan. Vex instinctively clings to her, taking comfort in her mother’s warmth as Elaina holds her tight and pets the little girl’s dark hair, and doesn’t even notice the next flash that momentarily brightens up the room.

“We’re safe inside, yes? Nothing will hurt you as long as I’m here, I promise.”

Young Vex nods against her mother’s bosom, burying her head into the cotton of her mother’s shirt as she feels her body begin to calm down. Mother’s right, she’s always right, and ever so slowly, the fear begins to subside.

“That’s my brave little Vex,” Elaina murmurs, and Vex hums when her mother presses her lips to the side of her head. “My bright little girl. I love you so very much. There’s nothing to fear from a storm, and it will be gone in the morning. Sleep, yes?”

Vex does.

_ the nature is so: the same rain that draws you near me falls on rivers and land,   
on forests and sand, and makes the beautiful world that you see in the morning. _


End file.
